Ghosts of the Past
by Kieran-Prince
Summary: Link hasn't let go of the past, months after the final battle. When a certain demon comes back to haunt him, will he be able to handle it? Warning: Yaoi, post-SS.


**A/N: This plot bunny has been floating around in my head for the past few weeks now and it won't leave me. It doesn't help that Ghirahim has now become my muse for the past few weeks. So, I decided to write it up. **

**Pairing: Ghirahim x Link**

**Warning: Yaoi, post-Skyward Sword**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda, Skyward Sword, or the characters.**

* * *

Link sat on the floating island above Skyloft and watched as everyone bustled around in the town. The sound of the waterfall relaxed him immensely as he stared off to space. Everything was peaceful in his life now that he no longer had crazy demons chasing after Zelda and himself. He could hardly believe that it had about six months since he had defeated Demise. He could still remember the exact moment as though it were just yesterday.

His eyes slid shut as he envisioned the battle again. So much blood had been splayed on the floor. His stomach turned just thinking about it. Grunts and screams reverberated through the atmosphere. Lighting crashed down on the earth, striking their swords whenever one of them lifted it to the sky. The minute that he felt his sword pierce Demise's defenses for the last time, a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders. Everything that he had been training for, all of his blood and tears had been honed for that one moment.

Demise had sworn to Link that he would continue to be reborn, haunting his descendents until the end of time. His evil would continue to haunt the lands while the Goddess's pure energy descended into new individuals. They would forever be stuck in a battle of life and death, good versus evil. And while that should left Link feeling apprehensive about the future, the hero couldn't help but feel grateful that the battle was over for now.

A soft breeze brought Link back to reality. He sighed and leaned back in contentment, smiling slightly. His thoughts then moved to Zelda. He thought back to that moment when his friend had confessed her true feelings for him and how nervous he had felt. Zelda was extremely beautiful, sweet, and seemed like the perfect girl for him. She loved him with all of her heart and wished for Link to say the same.

But Link couldn't say it. He did feel a fondness towards his childhood friend, but it wasn't to the extent of love. He only thought of her as a friend. He had told her this and Zelda cried. She cried but smiled at him at the same time. That smile still haunted him sometimes. She told him that she understood what he was saying and wished him happiness. After that, Zelda disappeared into the woods, leaving behind a sense of sadness and slight regret.

But Link shouldn't say that he regretted his decision, because he didn't. He would never want to hurt Zelda in anyway and lying to her would surely hurt her in ways that Link would rather no think about.

But there was something that he regretted. In the back of his mind, Link felt a constant guilt floating around. And for the past few months, that guilt intensified, especially at night. At night, he always felt a presence hovering over him, whispering in his ears. But he wasn't sure what it was and why he felt guilty. He had done nothing that would warrant any amount of guilt. But that nagging feeling kept coming back.

Another breeze brushed by him and the smile on his face disappeared. The air around him stilled until it felt heavy and uncomfortable. There was someone or something on the island with him. He could feel eyes staring hard at his skull and the hairs on the back of his neck stood up on end. Clenching his fist, Link quickly turned around. But there was nobody around. The pond looked peaceful, showing no disturbance at all.

Link knew better though. His hand curled around the sword that Gondo had constructed especially for him, since he had to return the Master Sword to its rightful place. Standing up slowly, Link narrowed his eyes. Months of constantly solving puzzles had made it much easier for him to spot details that he had never noticed before. Just like the distortion a few feet away from him.

Link gripped onto his sword and jumped into the air. He shouted loudly before slicing his sword right through the distortion, causing the waves to become disruptive in the air. However, whatever was trying to hide from his sight didn't seem to want to become visible. Scowling, Link slashed through the same spot, becoming more aggravated by the minute. After a while, Link stopped swinging his sword and just glared at the spot in front of him.

A familiar chuckle came from the spot and Link narrowed his eyes. He vaguely remembered that voice and he raked his mind before his blood ran cold. He slowly backed away, his eyes widening in horror. The chuckle grew before red, gold, and black diamonds appeared in front of him.

Link's heart stopped as he saw Ghirahim appear from the flood of diamonds. He stumbled back, tripping over his feet. Ghirahim continued to smirk condescendingly as he walked towards Link.

"What's wrong, Link? You look as though you've seen a ghost," Ghirahim mocked.

Link's eyes widened at the sentence and he stilled. Something about Ghirahim was off, but he couldn't tell what it was. The man looked the same as he had been before their final battle, free of blood and wounds. His red cape was billowing behind him, catching the breeze slightly. He still had his annoying attitude and flamboyant air around him. So then, what was different about the man?

And better yet, how was he still alive? Link was positive that Ghirahim had died after Demise's sword was destroyed. It was impossible for him to have escaped from the sword in time to save himself. Not to mention, Ghirahim had shown a strong loyalty towards Demise, despite the fact that his master had just used him.

Ghirahim bent down and moved his hand down so that it was just below Link's chin. Link vaguely noticed that the demon never touched him. But be could still feel the demon's presence, which wasn't much better. He looked up in anger, glaring at Ghirahim.

Ghirahim just laughed in amusement, licking his lips. "Why so angry, Link? You didn't actually think that I would disappear so easily, did you?"

Link growled deep in his throat and moved away from Ghirahim. He glared at the man hard before freezing. His eyes locked onto the rock that was on the other side of the pond. He shouldn't have been able to see the rock at all, considering that Ghirahim was right in his line of sight. Better yet, he shouldn't have been able to see anything that was behind Ghirahim at all.

Moving closer slowly, Link lifted his hand slowly. Ghirahim's eyes widened slightly before a gleam entered his eyes. Link's hand was shaking as he came within centimeters from Ghirahim's chest. His fingers went to graze the man's chest, but he was met with thin air. He held his breath as his hand went right through the man's chest.

Link looked up at Ghirahim in shock. The man was….a ghost? He quickly snatched his hand away from the man- well, ghost. Swallowing deeply, Link slowly backed from the demon. He lifted his sword up, pointing it right at Ghirahim. The demon just laughed, tossing his head back in hilarity.

"You honestly believe that you can defeat me while I'm in this form, Link? Your confidence knows no bounds," Ghirahim mocked.

Link raised an eyebrow before looking Ghirahim up and down. The demon had a point. There was no way for him to defeat a ghost with just his sword. But there had to be a way. Narrowing his eyes, Link sheathed his sword. Ghirahim's own eyebrow raised at the child's actions before a smirk came across his face.

"What? Give up so soon, hero? That doesn't seem like you," Ghirahim teased.

Link growled and turned his back to the demon. It was risky to turn his back on his enemy, but what was the worse that Ghirahim could do? Materialize in front of him and scare him? It wasn't as if the demon could touch anything. He was a ghost.

Ghirahim frowned when the child settled for ignoring him. That frown morphed into a scowl a few seconds later. Nobody ignored Demon Lord Ghirahim, not even the chosen hero. Clenching his hands tightly, the demon walked up to Link and grabbed at the closest thing that he could get his hands on, which turned out to be the hero's sword.

Link snapped his head around when he felt the weight of his sword leave his back. He jumped up and froze in horror. Ghirahim was holding onto his sheath and sword in mock-curiosity. The demon pulled the sword out, throwing the sheath somewhere behind him. The sound of a splash could be heard and Link watched as his sheath sunk into the water of the pond. His eyes flickered back to Ghirahim, who was inspecting his blade.

"Hmmm…not as well made as the Master Sword, of course. But such a slick design, so smooth to the touch…an interesting blade for someone like the hero to possess," Ghirahim thought out loud.

Link stared at Ghirahim in horror. The demon shouldn't have been able to grab onto his sword. He was a ghost. Weren't ghosts supposed to be unable to touch anything. But it seemed as though Ghirahim didn't need a reason for being able to touch anything.

The hero kept his eyes on Ghirahim before he slowly started to inch towards the demon. He scooted about five or so inches before Ghirahim locked eyes with him. Link froze, holding his breath. The demon moved his eyes up and down the hero's body before a smirk came to his face.

"You didn't actually think that you could sneak up on me, did you?" Ghirahim asked dangerously.

Link opened his mouth, blinking several times. Shock ran through his body and he found that he couldn't say or do anything. Ghirahim just continued to smirk at Link before slicing the sword through the air. Link shivered as he felt the breeze emitted from the sword. However, he kept his ground, refusing to back down.

Ghirahim narrowed his eyes at the child's bravery- or stupidity. He tightened his grip on the child's sword before slowly walking towards Link. The sword gleamed in the light menacingly.

"Now, what should I do with the little hero that killed my master and destroyed my body? Perhaps I'll give him the same treatment that he offered my master. Hmm…but that seems too forgiving," Ghirahim mused to himself.

Link shivered as Ghirahim entered his personal space. He tried to push the demon away, only for his hands to go right through the demon. Link cursed as he remembered that Ghirahim was dead- and a ghost, nonetheless. But it seemed like Ghirahim was able to touch his possessions, which made little sense to him.

But he pushed those thoughts to the back of his head. Now wasn't the time to be thinking about the impossibility of the situation. Especially considering the fact that a vengeful ghost was currently thinking of ways to torture him. Link started to back away from Ghirahim, who just followed him movement.

Link felt the ground under one of his heels disappear and he stopped dead. Peeking over his shoulder, Link saw that he was standing on the very edge of the island. Swallowing deeply, Link turned back towards Ghirahim, who's eyes were glittering maliciously.

"On second thought, let's see what happens when you fall from 100 feet," Ghirahim said ecstatically.

Link's eyes widened in horror when he suddenly lost his balance. The hero could feel his body fall backwards until he was no longer on the floating island. And due to his angle, he was instantly swept towards the waterfall. He stared flailing his arms wildly, trying to get out of the waterfall. However, most of his body was already caught in the strong current. A weightlessness settled over him as he tumbled towards the pond below. He nearly screamed as he felt his body fall several yards, the floating island getting further and further away by the second.

He crashed into the lake below, causing pain to travel through his entire body. Link opened his eyes and looked around in the lake. The water around him was flowing around rapidly, more than likely due to the fact that he had crashed into the water. A faint cry could be heard before more followed seconds later. The burn in his lungs started to make itself apparent and Link clawed at the water around him. He kicked his feet desperately, trying to get to the surface quickly. He could see the light of the sun grow larger as he came closer to the surface and that motivated him to swim faster.

His hands were the first to break through the water. Seconds later, his head followed and he immediately opened his mouth to fill his lungs. Water was coughed up and out of his mouth. His chest felt compressed and he felt as though he couldn't get enough air. He could vaguely hear people screaming at him, but he paid them little mind.

Blinking the water out of his eyes, Link began swimming for land. Every so often, he would cough to rid of some of the tightness of his chest. His hand soon came in contact with the shore and he crawled onto dry land. Unable to hold himself up completely, Link turned over so that his back was facing the ground and he collapsed. He took in several deep breaths, trying to calm down his nerves.

His eyes fluttered close for a few seconds before he felt the presence of a large crowd of people. Opening his eyes, Link saw that most of the people of Skyloft were standing around him in worry. In particular, Fledge was standing over him.

"Link, are you alright?" Fledge asked in horror.

Link looked into Fledge's eyes and just nodded his head. The other boy didn't look convinced though, nor did anyone else. Fledge kneeled down and tried to help Link get up. Sighing, Link pushed himself off of the ground with Fledge's help. His clothing felt heavy on his body, making it difficult for him to move. However, he managed to get up on his knees before somebody else placed their hand on his shoulder.

"Link, you shouldn't be moving! You just feel from the island, for Goddess sake!" Karane scolded.

Karane tried to grab his arm, but Link shook her away. He stood up on wobbly legs and started to make his way towards the Knight's Academy when he stumbled. Link hissed as his legs started to tense in pain. Perhaps his landing wasn't as painless as would have hoped for it to be.

"Link! Stop right now!" Karane shouted from behind him.

Link just rolled his eyes at his classmates shouts and continued walking forward. All of a sudden, he heard something fall towards him from the sky. Furrowing his eyebrows in confusion, Link looked up. His breath left him and he stumbled backwards quickly, tripping over his own feet.

His eyes watched as his sword sheathed itself into the earth. His eyes grew wide before he slowly looked up. Although there was nobody there, he swore that he could see Ghirahim smirking down at him with his arrogant attitude.

* * *

Steam rose and spread all throughout the bath as Link finished running the water. He dipped his fingertips into the water to check the temperature. It was the perfect temperature to take a bath in, and even more so to just soak in. Groaning at the prospect of relaxing in a bath, Link quickly stood up and stripped himself of his clothes.

A shiver went through his body as his skin was bathed in the warm around him. His eyes fluttered close for a second before he lifted one leg and placed it in the bath. The water felt wonderful and he could already feel his tense muscles relaxing. His slipped his other foot into the water and slowly lowered his entire body into the water. A happy groan left his mouth, filing the entire room. He let his eyes fall shut and his mind go blank, just reveling at the chance of relaxing in the bath.

A familiar chuckle echoed through the bath and Link snapped his eyes open. His face grew pale and he snapped his head around. A chill penetrated his body and Link sunk deeper into the water. However, the chill just seemed to dig deeper under his skin. He brought his arms up to try and give himself some sort of stability.

The chuckle in the room grew louder and louder before it morphed into sadistic laughter. Ghirahim suddenly appeared in front of Link, causing the hero to jump to the other side of the bath. He quickly covered up his groin with his hands and glanced up at Ghirahim. A flush was slowly spreading across his cheeks and up to the tips of his ears.

Ghirahim gazed around the bath, taking in the details. He frowned at the bland coloring of the room and turned his attention back to the hero. A sly smile came to his face as he took in the embarrassed look on the child's face. It was quite adorable how this child defeated his master. He was shy over the fact of showing his body to others.

A laugh bubbled out of Ghirahim's mouth and he floated closer to Link. The hero backed up, making sure to keep his hands over his groin. He looked back quickly and noticed that he was running out of room to run. Looking back at Ghirahim, Link looked around the room to find some way around the ghost. He hissed when his back connected with the wall and his eyes widened in horror. Ghirahim continued to walk towards Link with a smirk on his face until his face was centimeters away from the hero's.

Link was breathing harshly by now, his blush spreading even further. Ghirahim eyes raked down Link's body until they stopped right at the hands blocking his line of sight. The demon clicked his tongue in annoyance and moved his hand up slowly. Link flinched and tried to move away from the hand.

The hero was slightly comforted by the fact that the demon's hand slipped right through his body. Of course, that was before a series of tingles erupted on his skin. Goosebumps popped up on his arms and a shivered worked its way down his spine. Everything seemed to trail down to his groin, were a bubble of heat was starting to grow.

Link's hands twitched when he felt his groin start to tighten. He clenched his legs together, his thighs shaking in embarrassment. As Ghirahim's hand continued to move through his body, the tingles grew more intense. It got so intense that he almost doubled over to due all the built up pleasure.

Ghirahim's eyes widened as he took in the hero's state. He actually wasn't expecting the child to react like to this. His look of surprise was soon replaced by a sly smile. He brought his other hand up and moved it towards Link's groin. His hand slipped right through the hero's hands and through his groin as well. The demon hummed to himself as he felt the heat coming from the child's hardness. He was honestly surprised that the Goddess's hero would even succumb to such acts.

The demon licked his lips. All the better for him to get back at the child for everything that he had done to ruin his life. He twisted his hand in Link's groin area, reveling in the loud moan that left the hero's mouth. His other hand floated around the area near the hero's nipples. Link whined deep in his throat before collapsing into the tub. Water splashed out of the bath, soaking the floor nearby.

However, Link paid it no mind. His body was being overwhelmed by all the foreign feelings and he couldn't stop himself from twisting and turning. The heat of the water did nothing to help his predicament either. If anything, it made anything worse.

Ghirahim kneeled down so that he was eyelevel with Link. He removed the hand that was hovering near Link's groin and moved it up to the child's face. The hero's body relaxed drastically the moment that his hand was moved away and his eyes fluttered open. His bright blue eyes looked at Ghirahim in fear and shame, two emotions that caused the demon lord to almost groan out loud in happiness.

Leaning towards Link, Ghirahim brought his mouth to the child's ear. "I'm going to break you, dear hero of the Goddess," Ghirahim whispered.

Link's eyes widened in horror before he tried to escape the bath. However, Ghirahim intercepted his path. The demon lord moved his hands up and down Link's body, reveling in the cries that left the child's mouth.

He was about to move his hand back down to Link's groin when a loud knock broke the tension. Link snapped his head up and he gazed at the door in shock. He blinked a couple of times before standing up in the bath. Ghirahim glared at the door before disappearing into thin air. Link snapped his head to the spot where the demon had disappeared from.

Without a moment's hesitation, Link got out of the bath and dried himself quickly. He wasn't sure when the demon would come back and he wasn't about to stand around to figure that out. He put on his tunic and pulled up his pants, brushing out any wrinkles or dust that had settled in the clothing.

The knocking from earlier came back with a vengeance. Breaking himself out of his stupor, Link rushed over to the door and pulled it open. Standing in the doorway was Karane with her arms crossed. She glared up at Link for a few seconds before a look of shock came to her face.

"Link? I'm sorry, did I disturb your bath?" Karane asked in worry.

Link gave his classmate a small smile before shaking his head. He walked out of the bath and gave Karane a small wave before walking towards his room. Several thoughts were revolving around in his head, all of them concerning Ghirahim.

The ghost was really starting to worry him. He probably wouldn't be so worried about him if it wasn't for the fact that the demon could touch him. Although, it wasn't exactly a 'touch' that Link had felt back in the bath. It was more like his presence held some sort of power over him. But Link hadn't the first clue as to why that was even possible. Not to mention, he seemed to be able to touch Link's possessions as well.

Link sighed and placed a hand on his head. He vaguely noticed that he had passed his professors' rooms and he slowed to a stop. Perhaps Professor Owlan or Professor Horwell knew something about ghosts. Both professors did have an extensive collection of books. And there had to be at least one book covering his predicament.

Deciding to take his chances, Link turned around. He decided to knock on Professor Horwell's door first, since he was closer to him. He knocked softly on the door, waiting patiently when he heard the sound of shuffling in the room. The door opened seconds later, revealing Horwell in his nightgown.

The professor looked surprised to see Link. "Link. What are you doing up a such a time like this?"

Link sighed and scratched his head nervously. Horwell could see the tension in his student's body and gave a grim smile. Something was wrong with Link. But it didn't look as though he would be made aware of the situation. He opened his door wider, signaling Link to enter his room. Link smiled gratefully and walked inside of the room. His eyes immediately moved towards the tall bookshelf and he unconsciously started looking at the spines of some of the books.

Horwell walked up beside him after closing the door and pulled up a chair for Link to sit in. The hero shook his head, declining from the seat. The professor sighed and sat down in the chair himself. Link looked over to Horwell, waiting for the older man to say something.

Seeing that his student's attention was on him, Horwell leaned back against the seat. "Link, there's something bothering you. And you came specifically to me for a reason, correct?"

Link nodded his head in hesitation. His eyes moved back to the bookshelf and he inspected more of the books. Horwell noticed where Link's true attention laid and he chuckled softly. "You need a book?" Horwell asked carefully.

Link nodded his head again before walking towards the bookshelf. Horwell hummed in understanding at decided to just let his student look through his books. The next few minutes are silent save for the sound of breathing and pages turning. About five minutes later, Link walked over to Horwell carrying a couple of books. The professor looked at the titles of the books. His eyebrows raised in mild surprise.

Link had picked several books dealing with ghosts, ranging from vengeful spirits to full body possession. Horwell slowly moved his gaze up to Link, who was too staring at the books to notice his curious glance. But he noticed something swimming around in his student's eyes. Something dark.

"Are these the books you need?" Horwell asked Link, storing what he observed in his mind for now.

Link moved his head up so that he was looking at his professor. He nodded and brought the books close to his chest. Horwell sighed and rubbed his temples. The situation surrounding Link seemed much more ominous now. But it was not his place to interfere if he wasn't even aware of the situation.

"Well, if you wish for any type of assistance, you know where to find me," Horwell told Link gently.

Link gave his professor another grateful smile before he nodded his head. He walked towards the door and grasped onto the doorknob before stopping. Turning back to Horwell, Link softly thanked his professor for letting him borrow the books. Horwell watched at Link left his room and his eyes narrowed once the door closed. He would need to keep a close eye on Link for the next few days.

* * *

After leaving Horwell's room, Link had quickly jogged back to his room without drawing any attention to himself. He slipped inside of his room with little difficulties and sighed in relief. The books in his hands felt heavy, as though he were holding a large burden in his arms.

Link made his way over to his bed and placed the books on his bed. He moved his hand over to his desk and turned on the light. He then moved back towards the bed only to fall down in horror. Ghirahim was sitting on his bed with his legs crossed. The demon was flipping through one of the books on his bed, although it looked like his fingers were slipping through a couple of the pages.

"You know Skychild, this is such an interesting book. You really should read what this author has written about ghosts haunting those that they consider their enemies," Ghirahim said in mock-interest.

Scowling angrily, Link ripped the book away from Ghirahim's hands. The demon lord snapped his head up in mild shock before narrowing his eyes dangerously. Link shivered when he felt the temperature of the room drop by almost ten degrees. He wrapped his arms around himself and slowly backed away from Ghirahim. The demon's ebony eyes were gleaming brightly.

Ghirahim stood up and started stalking towards Link. The hero looked around his room desperately for anything that would get Ghirahim away from him. His back connected with the wall and Link cursed mentally. A smirk came to Ghirahim's face and slowly moved his hand up. A familiar red glow surrounded the demon's hand and Link wasn't particularly curious about what would happen if he were touched by the hand.

A flash of gold caught his eyes and Link looked over to his right. He spotted the harp that Zelda gave him lying innocently on the bed. Link instantly reached out of the harp and held it out in front of him. Ghirahim stopped dead and looked down at the instrument before laughing loudly.

"Skychild, you are so amusing! You actually believe that a little harp will stop me?" Ghirahim asked humorously.

Ghirahim reached out for the harp, only to recoil in horror and anger. Link saw a flash of pain shine in the demon's eyes and he looked down at the hand that had reached for the harp. He saw Ghirahim clenching onto the hand tightly, hiding his hand from view. However, it was obvious that he had been hurt in some way.

The demon lord growled loudly before roaring in anger. Link flinched back but kept his grip on the harp tight. Ghirahim glared at Link harshly before reaching out of the hero. However, Link moved up the harp in time to intercept the attack. Ghirahim roared again, this time in pain, as his other hand was burned. Link watched in shock as a series of red blisters erupted on the demon's skin before smoke started coming from Ghirahim's hand.

Unable to deal with all of the pain, Ghirahim disappeared without a trace. Link remain still in the room for the next few seconds before looking around. Ghirahim seemed to have disappeared, probably for good. A sigh of relief left his chest and Link lowered the harp down. He slowly walked towards his bed, keeping his hand wrapped around the harp just in case Ghirahim came back.

He sat on his bed and began flipping through the pages on the first book that he saw. His eyes flew open as he came across a particular section. He read through the paragraph a couple of times before gasping.

"_Although quite rare, it is possible for a ghost to bond itself to a human of their choosing. This bond usual will occur moments before the person had died, only to be reinforced later on when they come back as a ghost. Most of the time, these bonds are unhealthy and can be detrimental to the human, both physically and mentally. One sign that a ghost has been bonded to a human is that the human is the only one who can see the ghost, with the exception of those who are in touch with the supernatural realm. The ghost will also feel strong feelings towards the human, whether they are love or hatred."_

Link blinked and looked down at the paragraph again. Although he wasn't exactly sure if anyone would be able to see Ghirahim, the ghost did tend to disappeared whenever someone came within their line of sight. Not to mention, Ghirahim did seem to have strong feelings of hatred towards him. Link looked back down at the passage and read the rest of the page, trying to see if there was any way to rid of Ghirahim for good.

He spent the next few hours flipping through all of the books, but nothing seemed to come up about ridding of a ghost. Link sighed and threw the last book down on the floor with the rest of the books. He collapsed into his bed and looked out of the window. It was nearing sunrise and he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. And someone was sure to come into his room to wake him up in a couple of hours or so.

Groaning in exhaustion, Link shut his eyes slowly. He made sure to keep the harp tucked under his pillow just in case Ghirahim decided to come back. He could feel the heaviness of his eyelids and he yawned in exhaustion. He sighed and slumped into the bed, letting himself get some sleep.

* * *

He was dreaming. At least, it looked like he was dreaming. He was in Ancient Cistern, more specifically the basement. A shiver worked its way through Link as he continued walking through the basement area. He hadn't ran into any obstacles or monsters yet, which was really peculiar. If he remembered correctly, there were plenty of undead Bokoblins that had popped out during his first trip to the Cistern.

Link made his way through the rest of the basement with little difficulty. Then, his body came to a stop on top of the hill overlooking the bone yard. His body started shivering again as memories of the first time came back. The blinding fear he had felt when he was climbing the rope, all while trying to get away from the Bokoblins without falling. The silence that had rang out in the entire room, so eerie and unnatural.

But this time, there wasn't a rope leading up the first floor of the Ancient Cistern. All that was in front of him was a bone yard. And for some reason, his body was walking forward regardless. Link tried to stop his legs in some way, but nothing was listening to him. It was as if someone else had control of his body while he was just observing.

His legs continued walking forward until he came to a stop in the center. His eyes looked all around him, waiting for the moment when the undead Bokoblins would jump out to eat him. But instead of that, a chill entered the bone yard. Fog started to set in in waves until Link couldn't even see five inches in front of him.

Someone else was in the bone yard. He could tell when he heard the sound of footsteps stepping on bones. And judging on their position, they were directly behind him. Link swallowed hard before slowly turning around. His eyebrows flew up when his body did exactly what he wanted. But that surprise soon left when he felt his arms moving to his back. His fingers worked at the belt that held the sheath to his body.

Link gasped as he felt the sword fall to the ground in a heap, but his hands didn't stop there. They continued to remove his weapons and equipment, even going as far as to take off his wallet. He threw everything behind him and he was sure there was a small pile of his stuff collecting behind him.

Footsteps rang through the bone yard as the person just ahead of him walked closer. Link clenched his jaw and tried to back away so that he could grab his sword. But it didn't look as though his body wanted to listen to him. Link cursed softly before looking ahead with sharp eyes. He caught the sight of red clothing before he could see a grey tint walking closer. Link stared in horror as Ghirahim came up to him. However, instead of a playful smirk or a arrogant smile, the demon was emotionless. Well, as emotionless as a sadistic demon could be.

Ghirahim's jaw was clenched tight and his hands were by his side. Link let his gaze fall down to the ghost's hands and he felt a small burst of satisfaction over the fact that Ghirahim's hands were still bruised. Of course though, Ghirahim didn't look particularly happy.

The demon lord grabbed Link's collar and dragged his face towards his. Link's eyes flew open at the fact that the demon could touch him. He started to struggle immediately, which caused Ghirahim to growl loudly.

"I'm not in the mood for games today, hero. Tonight, you're under _my_ control, and there's nothing that you can do about it," Ghirahim hissed out.

Ghirahim threw Link to the ground and gritted his teeth. His bloodlust was raging inside of his body and he needed some kind of bloodshed before he went crazy. And what better way to satisfy his need for blood that to drain the hero?

Of course, he had more self-control than to actually drain to child of his blood. The hero was his only source of entertainment while he was dead. It would be boring if he were to just kill him off in his dreams. Because one wrong move, and he could end up killing the hero for real. So, he had to settle with just breaking the child's will to fight, something that would end up being a tedious task. But the end result would definitely be worth the hard work.

Ghirahim walked towards the child and kneeled down. He reached over the Skychild's head and grabbed onto his sword. Since his powers left his body when he died, he would have to deal with using the hero's sword. He unsheathed the sword and immediately sliced through the tunic that the child was wearing. A smirk came to his face when his eyes connected with the child's chest.

Such an innocent and pure body. He would look forward to soiling the child, inside and out.

"Pay attention child. I'm about to mark you as my own and taint your pure body for the rest of time," Ghirahim said sadistically.

Link snapped his head up and watched in horror as his own sword trailed down towards his chest. He shook his head frantically, trying to gain movement back in his body. However, his muscles didn't even seem to want to move at all. He gritted his teeth when he felt the sharp blade trail down his abdomen, teasing the skin. The sword moved back up until it was hovering over the spot where his heart was.

A feeling of dread washed over Link. Would Ghirahim really kill him right now when he was defenseless and vulnerable? The demon lord seemed like the honorable kind of demon, who would want to fight without any obstacles or weaknesses holding his opponents back.

Link hissed as the sword began to slice through his chest. Ghirahim licked his lips and placed all of his concentration into making the perfect mark for the Skychild. Link twisted his head from side to side, but no other part of his body seemed to want to listen to him. He could feel blood start to pour out of the wound that Ghirahim was making and a sourness settled in.

His breath came faster and faster and Link thought that he was going to pass out. Ghirahim smirked in satisfaction when he was finished with the mark. He kneeled down and wiped off the excess blood. He brought his hand up to his mouth, tasting the child's blood. He groaned loudly, licking every finger until all traces of the hero's blood was gone from his hands. The child's blood really was delicious.

Ghirahim observed the mark that he made on Link's chest and smirked. He had carved three diamonds above the child's heart, all of them lined up in a circle. Each one got progressively smaller until it cycled back to the larger diamond. Ghirahim noticed the red tint of the child's skin and he leaned down.

His long tongue slipped out and he licked the mark slowly, relishing the taste of the blood. He heard a loud hiss from Link, which caused his smirk to grow larger. He looked up towards the child and slipped his tongue out. The slick appendage moved upward until it was right in front of Link's face.

Link's eyes widened in horror as he saw Ghirahim's tongue in his face. He tried to move his head away, but to no avail. The demon's tongue licked at his bottom lip, causing Link's stomach to turn in disgust. Ghirahim saw the look of disgust pass through Link's eyes and he growled. The demon leaned up and grabbed a large clump of the hero's hair.

"I don't remember giving you permission to show your own opinion. You are my pet now, do you understand _Link_?" Ghirahim asked dangerously, leaving no room for argument.

Link pierced his lips shut and looked down to avoid Ghirahim's gaze. However, the demon just forced his gaze back up, but not before Link saw the mark on his chest. Ghirahim had mark him. He had tainted his body with his demonic wants. Link felt his stomach turn again and he could barely keep his stomach down.

He was…owned…by Ghirahim…

* * *

Link snapped his eyes open and sat up in a rush. He looked around the room in shock before relaxing into the bed. It was just a dream. Link took in a deep breath, only to hiss when his chest started burning. In particular, the spot over his heart ached. His eyes grew wide in horror before he nearly ripped his tunic off.

A sigh of relief left Link's mouth as he observed his chest. There was no mark, no blood, and no evidence that Ghirahim had even carved him up. His heart calmed down somewhat and he found that he could breath a lot easier now.

But what still confused him was the fact that everything had felt so real. His chest was still hurting and he had an overwhelming desire to clean himself from the filth that was crawling under his skin. He felt violated in the worse sense.

Link looked around the room. He noticed that the room was in the same state that he left it in when he went to sleep. The only difference was the pile of books were now stacked up in a neat pile. The hero froze as he stared at the books before scanning the rest of the room. He could have sworn that he had left the books spread out on the floor.

A knock at his door caused him to jump out of the bed. He caught himself before he tumbled to the floor, standing on shaking legs. His eyes were wide in shock as the knocking at his door grew louder.

"Link! Are you in there?" Pipit shouted from the other side.

Relief went through Link's body and he started walking towards the door. He opened the door and came fact to face with Pipit. His classmate was looking at him with intense worry and fear. Link's eyebrows raised to his hairline and he backed up when Pipit started touching his body.

Link caught Pipit's hands before they could touch any other part of his body. His eyes were wide in horror, wondering that was suddenly wrong with Pipit. His classmate slipped out of his grip and tried to move closer to Link, only to be slapped away. Huffing in annoyance, Pipit crossed his arms.

"Will you calm down Link? I need to make sure that you're okay," Pipit said sternly.

Link furrowed his eyebrows in confusion and looked into his classmate's face. Pipit saw the look of confusion pass over Link's face and recognition went through his head.

Sighing in hesitancy, Pipit placed a hand on Link's shoulder. "Link, you've been in your room for the past three days. Nobody has heard anything from you, although someone said that they heard moaning and screaming coming from this hall at night," Pipit explained.

Link's blood ran cold. Three days? He had been unconscious for _three days_? But he didn't feel any different. He didn't feel exhausted or hungry. So how could he had been asleep for three days? Knowing his luck, Ghirahim could have had something to do with it-

"Such nosy friends you have, Skychild."

A sharp breath left Link's lips before he quickly looked over his shoulder. Ghirahim was leaning against his desk with a smirk on his face. The demon was cleaning his fingernails, his white gloves resting on the desk. Link's jaw clenched in anger and he turned back towards Pipit.

"Are you sure you're alright Link? I can get one of the professors to come down here," Pipit offered.

Link shook his head quickly before peeking over his shoulder. Ghirahim was now fixing his hair, brushing the stray strands away from his face. The demon was gazing at him with a smirk on his face. Link slowly turned back around before nodding his head slowly. Pipit frowned and looked over Link's shoulder.

"What are you looking at?" Pipit asked curiously.

The hero held his hands up to stop his classmate from entering his room, but Pipit maneuvered around him. Pipit looked around Link's room and turned back to face the hero with an eyebrow raised.

"What was in here that's got you so scared Link? Got something in here that you don't want the professors to find?" Pipit joked.

Link's eyes widened before he looked over to Ghirahim. Pipit was probably a couple of inches away from the demon. There was no way that his classmate _couldn't_ see the demon-

"_One sign that a ghost has been bonded to a human is that the human is the only one who can see the ghost"_

That thought came back to his head and Link gasped softly. So then what the book had said was true. Pipit couldn't see Ghirahim because the demon was bonded to Link. And his classmate didn't possess any supernatural abilities either. Link lifted his gaze up to Ghirahim, who was smirking triumphantly. The demon must have known what he was thinking.

Slightly out of it, Link lifted his hand up, signaling Pipit to leave his room. His classmate gave Link a gaze of worry before following his wishes. He exited the hero's room, but not before turning around.

"You know where to find me if you need to talk Link. Or, if you need company anyway," Pipit said in mild embarrassment.

Pipit left his room and silence floated around the empty space. Seconds later, Link heard Ghirahim sigh.

"You know Skychild, I'm starting to become bored with your life. All you do is sit around this dreadful island and mope around all day. You need some excitement in your life," Ghirahim said.

Link rolled his eyes and looked out of his window. He didn't have the first clue about what to do about Ghirahim. The Goddess' harp did have an effect on the demon, but the last time that he tried that, it didn't end particularly well for him. Maybe he needed something with more of the Goddess' aura.

But Hylia's temple was on the Surface now. That would mean he'd have to fly down to Faron and enter the temple, all without alerting Ghirahim of his plans. And somehow, the odds of that turning out well didn't look quite well. He needed somebody's help.

Link's eyes went wide as he remembered something. Zelda was down on the Surface, and last time that he checked, she was currently in Faron Woods. She would definitely help Link once she knew his situation. And, she also was the vessel to the Goddess herself. Clapping his hands together, Link started to gather his supplies and weapons.

Ghirahim watched as the hero equipped himself. A smirk came to his face when he saw how tense the child's body was. He loved how much of an effect he had on the child. And judging on how tired was slowly becoming, that effect was starting to wear down on the child. Ghirahim was honestly surprised how quickly the child was falling into his hands. Honesty, he had expected more of a fight with the hero.

Link picked up the last of his things before walking out of his room. He didn't check to see if Ghirahim was following him or not, since he was pretty sure that the demon lord was. The telltale chill came back to him seconds later and Link saw the red flash of Ghirahim's cloak. He chose just to ignore the demon and started to jog out of the Knight's Academy.

Link ran towards the closest platform to jump from, which near the bottom of the stairs that he was running down. He reached the bottom of the stairs and turned to his right towards the wooden platform. He jumped off and whistled for his Loftwing. His crimson Loftwing flew right under and caught him quickly. Link grabbed onto his bird's thick feathers, guiding it towards Faron Woods.

* * *

"Ghirahim is haunting you?" Zelda exclaimed in shock.

Link nodded his head grimly. They were currently in the clearing right in front of the entrance of Faron Woods. Zelda was wringing her hands together nervously while brushing her hands out of her face.

"But I thought that you killed him. Shouldn't he be dead then?" Zelda asked in worry.

Link sensed as Ghirahim appeared right next to him. The demon was chuckling at the human's antics. His eyebrow raised up when he saw Zelda look towards him in confusion. She narrowed her eyes and raised her hand up towards the demon. Her hand came into contact with Ghirahim's arm, causing the demon to howl in pain.

A large burn mark was starting to appear on the demon's arm and he clutched at it. He had never felt anything so painful and intense in his life. Even touching the child's harp wasn't as painful. It probably had to do with the fact that the human girl was the Goddess' vessel. Hissing out in anger, Ghirahim disappeared.

Zelda's eyes were wide before she looked back towards Link. "Did I…was that Ghirahim that I just touched?" she asked in shock.

Link nodded his head and stared down at the ground. It looked as though Ghirahim couldn't stand to touch of Zelda, which luckily worked out in his favor. But that still didn't solve the problem of ridding of the demon for good. It did give him an edge against the demon though.

Link explained the rest of the situation to Zelda, telling her why Ghirahim disappeared and his predicament about trying to get rid of him for good. His friend scratched her head as she thought about his problem for a few minutes. Her eyes grew wide before she snapped her fingers.

She grabbed onto Link's hand and started dragging him towards the forest. "I have an idea and it might work. A couple of months ago, I found this book on rituals and spells that the Goddess had created during her time. And one of those rituals was used for ridding of vengeful spirits. We could use that to get rid of Ghirahim!" Zelda exclaimed in happiness.

Link smiled brightly and felt that tightness in his chest start to leave him. Ghirahim would finally leave to the next world. That smile grew larger until his cheeks started to hurt. He wrapped his arms around Zelda, hugging her tightly. Zelda gasped loudly before stopped. Her hands hovered over Link's back before she hesitantly hugged Link back.

Zelda moved out of Link's hug a few seconds later and started tugging him towards the forest. "Come on Link. We need to get some stuff from the forest to perform the ritual. If I remember correctly, we need the venom of a Deku Baba, mushroom spores, hornet larvae, and the blood of the water dragon."

Link stopped. The water dragon was Faron. He'd need Faron's blood to perform the ritual? But…how was he supposed to get her blood without hurting her in some way? He doubt that the dragon would appreciate his blade imbedded in her body. He had a good relationship with the water dragon, but not good enough to request her blood for his own needs.

Zelda looked over to Link and noticed the look of worry on his face. She gave her friend a smile and squeezed his hand in reassurance. "Don't worry Link. If you can get the rest of the items, I can get Faron's blood."

Link nodded his head and looked around at the forest. They were in the center of the forest, making it easier to for him to be able to judge where everything in the forest was. Zelda released his hand and began walking towards the large tree.

"Let's meet back here in a half hour," Zelda said.

Link nodded his head in agreement and started walking in the opposite direction. About a few steps later, he had stumbled upon a Deku Baba. The plant was weaving around in its spot, watching Link closely. The hero pulled out his bottle and slowly began moving closer. The plant immediately snapped its head forward, trying to bite any part of Link's body. Link moved out of the way and held the jar under the plant's mouth, collecting a substantial amount of the plant's venom.

Once his bottle was mostly full, Link put his bottle away and unsheathed his sword. He swiftly decapitated the plant, killing it instantly. Placing the bottle into his pouch, Link started to make his way through the forest. He vaguely remembered a hornet's nest located up ahead. Tightening his grip around his sword, Link started running. He felt something in the back of his mind, but Link just pushed it feeling back.

He came up to location where the hornet's nest was and made sure to keep his distance. There were a couple of Bokoblins hanging around the nest, circling around the tree where the nest was hanging from. Link backed up somewhat and slowly pulled out his bow. He placed an arrow on the string and pulled it back. One of his eyes fell shut and he aimed right for one of the Bokoblins.

He released the arrow and immediately pulled another arrow. He heard the cry of the Bokoblin as it was hit by the arrow, killing it swiftly. The other Bokoblin hollered loudly before running towards him. Link released his second arrow, killing the second Bokoblin just as fast. He sighed as the monster collapsed to the ground at his feet.

Standing up from his hiding place, Link pulled out his slingshot and aimed one of the seeds for the hornet's nest. He shot the seed, knocking the nest onto the ground. The hornets inside of the nests flew around their nest for a few seconds before flying off into different directions. Link held back for a few seconds before he was positive that all of the hornets were gone. Putting everything away, Link walked towards the nest and bent down.

He saw several larvae crawling around in the busted nest. Pulling out another empty bottle, Link carefully collected all of the larvae into the bottle. He quickly wiped his hands clean and stood up. He just needed some mushroom spores and then he would have all the items that he needed.

Link started walking towards the center of the forest when a familiar chill came back to him. He sped up his running, ignoring the demon that he knew was following behind him. He felt something grab at his ankle, causing him to fall to the ground. Link grunted as his knee connected with the ground. He moved his hand down to his waist, checking to make sure that both bottles were intact.

Link shuddered as he felt a deadly presence standing over him. Opening his eyes, Link looked up at Ghirahim. The demon was seething, his jaw drawn tense. The demon curled his fist and brought it down to Link's face. The hero flinched and closed his eyes. However, he felt nothing except for a tingle.

Opening his eyes slowly, Link saw Ghirahim's fist sticking out of his face. He had to admit that it slightly creeped him out to see the man's fist in his face. He moved his gaze up to Ghirahim, who was breathing harshly. His eyes were narrowed to slits and his nostrils were flared out.

"Do you know what it feels like to not be able to touch anything when you want to, Skychild?" Ghirahim asked lowly.

Link furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. The demon slowly started to calm down, his facial features growing calm. "I can't touch you when I'm out here in the world. In fact, I can barely to touch anything that I want to. I can't even get revenge on the one person whom I despise the most," Ghirahim confessed, his jaw clenching and unclenching.

Link tilted his head to the side, taking in Ghirahim's expression. The demon looked upset, honestly upset. His eyes were shining in anger and frustration. Link started to sit up, stopping when Ghirahim focused his gaze on the hero. The demon's eyes narrowed and he placed a hand to the child's chest.

Ghirahim closed his eyes when he felt the mark that he placed on the hero. While not there physically, the demon had taken care to place the mark inside of the child's mind. It would only be a matter of time before his mark would activate and then the hero would be his for the picking.

"I believe that you are aware of the fact that I have bonded to you. But what I'm sure you're curious about is what the bond actually involves," Ghirahim trailed off.

Link narrowed his eyes before nodding his head slowly. Ghirahim chuckled darkly before drawing close to Link. Their faces were a few centimeters away from each other.

"Well, telling you would just ruin the surprise. I think that I should just let the bond go ahead and simmer before it is just right. After all, you can't rush genius," Ghirahim said, fanning himself.

Ghirahim glanced at Link before moving his hand up to the child's chest. A gleam entered the demon's eyes, but Link pushed that thought aside. Instead, his focus was on the pain in his chest that had suddenly started to occur. Link felt a burning sensation near his heart, similar to the feeling that he had in his dream. Hissing at the sudden pain, Link recoiled away from Ghirahim. He felt a wetness on his chest and he gazed down. A red spot was starting to appear in his tunic, growing larger by the second. Link gasped and pulled his tunic away from his body. He peeked down at his chest from the opening in his tunic.

He wiped away some of the blood from his chest and observed the sudden marking that appeared on his skin. He froze when he recognized the marking as the same one that Ghirahim had given him in his dream. Snapping his head up to look at Ghirahim, the demon was just smirked at him. Moving closer to Link, Ghirahim locked gazes with the hero.

"I meant what I said in your dream, Skychild. You are mine now. Even if you manage rid of me, my presence will continue to hover around you for the rest of you lifetime," Ghirahim said.

Link's eyes widened in horror and he watched Ghirahim disappear. He slumped to the ground and fingered the sore mark on his chest. What was the demon's plan? And why would he mark him? Was it solely to mark his claim? That worried Link. What did the mark mean? The meaning had to be something bad for Link, since Ghirahim seemed satisfied over it. It couldn't mean that he was just Ghirahim's. There had to be another meaning.

Ghirahim's superiority over the situation didn't help matters either. Link was really starting to become worried about the situation. His heart was beating extremely, despite the pain that surrounded it.

Swallowing in fear, Link removed his hand from his chest. He placed a hand on the ground, pushing himself up from the ground. His legs were shaking slightly as well as the rest of his body. Noticing that the fear in his body wouldn't be leaving him anytime soon, Link slowly started to make his way back to the center of the forest.

* * *

Zelda wrung her hands nervously as she waited for Link to come back. Beside her was Faron, who was looking around the forest. The dragon had heard what the Goddess child had to say, but decided that she needed to observed the situation for herself. She wasn't dimwitted enough to just hand over her blood to anybody, not even the Goddess vessel. After all, her blood was very potent and valuable.

Faron spotted the hero a few yards away and she straightened her back. Her eyes narrowed as she noticed the condition of the hero. He seemed to be injured. But not only that; he also seemed shaken up about something.

Zelda soon saw him too and she waved to her friend. "Link! Over here!"

Link looked over to Zelda and smiled slightly. His smile was soon gone when he saw Faron right next to Zelda. He slowed down his pace and observed the water dragon. She didn't look imposing like he was expecting her to be after being dragged from her home. Link walked up to the two females, greeting them softly. His hand tightened slightly over his mark, hissing as softly as he could.

Zelda smiled at Link and looked over his figure. Her eyes were drawn to the blood that was soaking Link's hand and she gasped. "Link, what happened to you? You're hurt!"

Link nodded his head but moved away from Zelda when she tried to touch the spot. Faron narrowed her eyes as she inspected the blood. That was a peculiar place for the child to be bleeding from without any sign of real agony on his face. She extended her hand out and touched the blood stain, only to recoil back in shock. She sensed a dark presence around the mark. But that wasn't what worried her. What worried her was that fact that she recognized the dark energy. Ghirahim had possession over the child, and judging by how strong the mark was, a simple ritual wouldn't have the strength to put him to rest.

"Child, take off your tunic and let me see that marking on your chest," Faron said.

Link flinched back and looked down in hesitation. He slowly moved his hands down until he was grabbing the hem of the tunic. He pulled his tunic over his head and held the clothing in his hands. Faron moved her hand until it was right over the mark. She summoned her water to clean off the hero's chest.

The blood was cleaned off until a clear mark was present. She hissed in outrage as she took in the marking. Ghirahim had stacked his claim on the child after all. And it was only a matter of time before the demon finished the mark to permanently tie himself to the chosen hero. If that were to happen, then they were all doomed. That would mean that the demon would have full access to the hero's power, giving him the resource to try and destroy the Surface and Skyloft for good.

Breathing through her nose harshly, Faron called upon her powers. Although she doubted that she would have the power to completely rid of the mark, she could at least remove some of its evil presence. A ball of sparkling water floated in front of the hero before working its way into the gash on his chest.

Link hissed in pain and fell to his knees. His hand went up to his chest as he felt the water twist into his chest. It felt as if he couldn't breath. The pressure inside of his chest was almost too great for him to take. Beside him, he saw Zelda kneel down. Her hands rubbed his back softly, trying to draw his attention away from the pain. The pain receded a few minutes later, leaving behind a painful throbbing in his heart. He looked up at Faron, who was still frowning gravely.

"Come, chosen hero. We must hurry to Hylia Temple and start the ritual before the demon gains control over your mind and soul," Faron said.

Looking over to Zelda in surprise, the two slowly looked back towards the water dragon. Just what has he gotten himself into?

* * *

Candles lined the perimeter of the ritual circle that Zelda had created inside of Hylia's statue. She gathered a large bowl and placed it at Link's feet. Kneeling down, Zelda began mixing in several herbs together before she held her hand out. Link reached into his pouch and pulled out the two bottles that he had collected hornet larvae and venom. Zelda poured both ingredients inside of the bowl before mixing them up in the mixture.

Link's nose wrinkled in disgust as the smell wafted up into his nose. He coughed softly to try and rid himself of the disgusting smell, but that only seemed to make things worse. Zelda just ignored his sounds of disgust and finished up mixing everything together. Standing up, Zelda pulled out a small vial that held the mushroom spores inside. She sprinkled some of the spores into the mixture, causing smoke to start to rise from the bowl. Link stepped back but kept his eyes on the bowl.

Zelda moved the vial away from the bowl and placed the small container next to her. She then looked up towards Faron, who had been watching the entire thing silently. Zelda nodded her head at the dragon and the water dragon moved away from her spot next to the wall. She entered the ritual circle, causing the circle to glow.

"I will now begin the ritual. Link, I will need you to do everything that I say, no matter how gross or weird it sounds. Okay?" Zelda asked Link.

Link nodded his head and took a deep breath. Zelda gave him a comforting smile before she started to chant softly. She slowly stood up, holding the bowl in her hands. The mixture in the bowl was smoking continuously by now, the smoke rising to the sky. The volume of Zelda's chanting was steadily growing louder before her voice was echoing off the walls of the structure that they were in.

Faron moved up to Link and held out her hand. One of Link's bottles levitated out of his pouch and landed in the water dragon's hand. She moved the bottle over to his arm before extended one of her claws. Faron pierced the skin of her arm, causing a steady stream of blood to fall into the bottle.

The bottle filled pretty quickly and Faron moved the bottle away when she had the amount of blood that she needed. She moved her tongue down to her arm, licking up the access blood from her arm. The small wound healed slowly before it looked as though nothing had happened.

Faron handed the bottle to Zelda, who slowly poured most of the blood into the basin. The smoke rising from the bowl diminished but the smell remained. The mixture slowly turned a deep burgundy. Looking at Link, Zelda gave him a serious look.

"You're going to have to strip now, Link," Zelda said.

Nodding his head in understanding, Link undressed himself and tossed his clothes outside of the circle so that they wouldn't get stained. Zelda moved Link so that he was standing in the center of the circle. Her chanting started to trail off before she grew quiet. Her hand moved down, soaking in the mixture in the bowl. Her fingers moved around until there was enough of the liquid on his hand. She lifted her hand out of the bowl before moving it towards Link's chest.

Her fingers started painting odd designs on Link's chest, ranging from shapes to the Hylian alphabet. Her fingers went back to the bowl and she continued drawing the weird signs on Link's body until the only spot left untouched was the area around the engraving on his chest.

Sighing softly, Zelda dipped her hand back into the bowl for the last time. Her hand went up to the mark, only to gasp as her hand was repelled by some presence. This was the only warning that Zelda got that something was wrong before she was suddenly thrown out of the ritual circle. Her back collided with the wall, instantly knocking her out.

Faron hissed in anger and stepped towards Link. "Show yourself, Demon Lord Ghirahim!"

A loud laugh rang throughout the room before Ghirahim revealed himself. Faron and Link noticed something immediately off about the demon. Instead of the transparent body that both of them had been expecting, the demon now looked much more solid. His body seemed more translucent. He looked less like a ghost and more like a living being.

"Faron, I see that you've joined the party. How kind of you. Now you will have a front row seat as I kill the Goddess for good," Ghirahim said sadistically.

Link looked over to Zelda, who was slumped against the opposite wall. It looked like she was unconscious, which Link was extremely grateful for, because he didn't want her to see this. He moved his eyes back to Ghirahim, who was still gloating over how he would kill the Goddess and then take the rest of Link's life force for his own. Wait, _wait?_

Link snapped his head towards Ghirahim in horror. The demon was planning on living off of his life energy? But that would kill him and provide the demon with enough power to do what he wanted. He looked over to Faron, who was glaring dangerously at Ghirahim. It seemed like the water dragon had been aware of the demon's plans all along.

"Are you not aware on the danger that you would place on both the Surface and the hero? Neither would live for long if you impose your demonic presence over them," Faron growled out.

Ghirahim just chuckled darkly before looking over to Link, who stepped back in response. The demon stepped towards Link and lifted a hand up to the child's cheek. His finger grazed the surface, causing Link to recoil in shock. It would seem that the child wasn't expecting him to have the ability to touch him. Oh, but he was horribly mistaken. With the child's life force, he was no longer held back by the burden that came with being a ghost. He could touch anything, no matter what his emotions were. And more importantly, he could touch the hero.

"While that may be true for that hunk of rock in the sky, that same can't be said about the hero. After all, I've bound myself to his body. So, he can't die unless I want him to," Ghirahim said with a smirk.

The demon looked back down at Link, who was shivering in fear. His eyes were wide in shock and fear, two emotions that looked beautiful in the child's eyes. Ghirahim licked his lips slowly as he raked his eyes over Link's body.

Ghirahim was really looking forwards to this.

A smirk came to Ghirahim's face before he curled his fingers through Link's hair. He pulled the child up, connecting their lips in a rough kiss. The hero grunted at the impact before he struggled in Ghirahim's grip. However, the demon's grip was too strong for him to break. He wrapped his arms around the child's lower back, grinding their hips together. Link whimpered in disgust and struggled even harder in Ghirahim's grip.

While the two continued to 'kiss', Faron moved over to Zelda. She summoned some water into her hand before splashing Zelda's face with water. The Goddess' vessel spluttered before sitting up in shock. She wiped the water from her face and blinked up at Faron. She looked around and noticed that they were still in the statue. Zelda's eyes grew wide before she shot up.

"What's going on?" Zelda asked in worry.

"I fear that Ghirahim has already bonded most of his soul in the hero's body. And if we do not work fast, then he will be bound to Link for the rest for the hero's lifetime," Faron said gravely.

Zelda looked over at Link, who was practically being molested by Ghirahim. She frowned and nodded her head at Faron. The water dragon turned around and flew towards Ghirahim, shooting several water tentacles at the demon, hoping to separate him from the hero. Ghirahim broke the kiss and scowled in anger. He sent a glare at Faron before pushing Link out of the way.

Link stumbled a couple of steps in the ritual circle and watched as Faron started to battle against Ghirahim. Things didn't look good for Faron though. Although Ghirahim didn't have his power, he was still able to dodge the water dragon's attacks with ease. The demon ran up to Faron and threw a punch at the dragon, sending her back a few feet. Faron hissed in pain but shook it off as best as she could. Narrowing her eyes, Faron charged right at Ghirahim, snapping her jaws in an attempt to intimidate the demon.

Link watched in horror as the battle continued to wage on, and not in Faron's favor either. It seemed that the little amount of energy that Ghirahim had gained from Link went a long way in terms of strengthening him. The hero watched as Faron was thrown back yet again. Gulping in worry, Link clenched his hands together.

He saw movement out of the corner of his eyes and Link snapped his head in the direction. His eyes widened as he came face-to-face with Zelda. He had thought that she was unconscious! Link opened his mouth to say something, but Zelda slapped a hand over his mouth. She held a finger up to her mouth, signaling him to remain quiet. Link nodded his head moved over in the circle to give her some room. Zelda slowly lowered her hand from Link's mouth.

"I'm going to continue with the ritual. Faron is distracting Ghirahim, so we should have enough time to rid of his spirit," Zelda whispered.

Link nodded his head and spared a glance over his shoulder. Ghirahim kicked Faron in her underbelly, causing the dragon to curl up in pain. But despite that, the dragon continued to hold off against Ghirahim. She spun around quickly, hitting Ghirahim right in the face with her tail. The demon hissed in anger before reaching for the appendage. Faron dodged the grab and summoned more water tentacles to fend off Ghirahim.

Zelda's hands grabbed onto Link and the hero turned his attention back to Zelda. She closed her eyes and started chanting as softly as she could. The air around them started to buzz with excess energy before a light glow surrounded them. Zelda's chants increased in speed before her eyes snapped open. Her eyes were glowing brightly and they locked with Link's.

Link felt something enter his body and whatever it was, it felt refreshing. It was like he had taken a cleaning bath in one of the Sacred Springs. Shutting his eyes, Link's breath left him as something started to surround his heart. He could feel his heart start to purge the darkness that had surrounded it.

That peaceful feeling in his heart soon turned to turmoil. A loud, piercing scream filled the room. Link snapped his eyes open, but he couldn't see anything around him. Black smoke was surrounding him on all sides and for a few seconds, the hero feared for the worst. Luckily, Zelda recognized the panic going through Link's body. She tightened her hands around Link's, giving him an anchor in the darkness.

"_You can pull through Link. Just a little bit longer and then you'll be free," _Zelda said in his mind.

Link nodded his head, even though Zelda was unable to see him through the thick smoke. The darkness inside of him tried gripping tighter around his heart, causing him to seize up in pain. His eyes clenched shut and he gritted his teeth. A silent scream left his mouth as the darkness slowly started to worm itself deeper into his heart. He felt as though something was trying to take him over.

He had never felt something as painful as this. Link tried to resist the urge to claw at his chest. And so, as an equivalent, Link just tightened his jaw and tensed his body. Waves of agony raked through his body. As the darkness and the light continued to feud inside of his body, dark thoughts filled his head when the darkness started to gain an upper hand.

He thought about working alongside Ghirahim, becoming his weapon, his toy. He thought about draining Faron, Lanayru, and Eldin of their blood before letting it run through all the sources of water, turning it red with despair. But worst of all, he thought about killing Zelda. He imagined torturing her body until it couldn't take anymore. He thought about giving her a slow death in the very spot where Demise perished.

A scream left Link's mouth before he collapsed to the ground. His body started convulsing due to all the pain and thoughts. His hands went up to his head and he gripped his head. So many…dark thoughts. He couldn't stop them from flashing in his mind. Skyloft burning to the ground. His friends begging for mercy before they died at his feet. The Surface falling under the cruel leadership of Ghirahim and himself.

But then, a glimmer of light came into his mind. He saw Zelda smiling in the distance, flying on her Loftwing. The sun was rising from behind her and it seemed as though all the Loftwings in Skyloft decided to come out. They were all flying above Skyloft, cawing loudly.

Flashes of Skyloft then came to mind. He saw Pipit, Karane, and Fledge all laughing before waving at him. They all offered him a bright smile. At the Knight's Academy, Professors Owlan and Horwell were smiling at Link too. They offered him words of encouragement, patting him on the shoulder.

"_If you ever need assistance, you know where to find me Link," _Horwell whispered to Link.

Link's eyes widened before his back arched back sharply. Black smoke barreled out of his chest, flying up into the sky. The pain in the hero's heart swiftly left his heart, leaving behind the light that it had fought against. As the last of the smoke left Link's body, he felt the weight over his heart diminish. His eyes fell shut and Link slumped against the ground in exhaustion.

An outraged scream filled Link's ears before he looked in the direction of the shout. Ghirahim was clawing at his body as it steadily started to grow transparent. The demon flashed his angry eyes towards Link before charging towards the hero.

**"_You impudent brat! You will PAY!"_** Ghirahim roared, his eyes wide with anger.

Link gasped sharply as Ghirahim started to charge towards him. The murderous gleam in the demon's eyes chilled the hero down to his bones and he tried desperately to move his body. However, his muscles refused to follow what his brain wanted it to do. Cursing mentally, the hero tipped his head back and watched in horror as Ghirahim drew closer to where he was.

Ghirahim reached out to grab the child, only to curse in outrage as his hand slowly started to disappear. He came to a stop and looked down at his body in shock. He noticed that his entire body was slowly starting to disappear faintly into the atmosphere. Growling, Ghirahim reached out for Link.

The hero cried out as he was dragged off of the ground and into Ghirahim's grip. Before he could even wonder about the situation, Ghirahim's lips were on Link's. The demon ravished the child as thoroughly as he could, considering the fact that his body was disappearing. He wanted to be positive that he left his mark on the child, even if he had to do it with a kiss. Link struggled in Ghirahim's grip, pushing on the demon's chest as best as he could. After a few seconds, he found his hands slipping right through the demon's chest. Gasping in shock, Link's mouth accidentally opened up.

Not one to miss a chance, Ghirahim slipped his tongue deep into the child's mouth, twirling the appendage around the hero's. Link whimpered out, trying to find some part of Ghirahim's body that wasn't gone. His fingers eventually found the demon's shoulders and he pushed hard.

Their kiss broke for a few seconds and Ghirahim locked eyes with Link. "You had better not forget me, Skychild. Because if you do, I will not hesitate to leave my mark on you again," Ghirahim warned before reattaching his lips to Link's.

Link yelped and pounded at Ghirahim's shoulders, trying to get the demon away from him. He shivered as he felt Ghirahim's presence wash over him, sending waves of heat all across his body. Link whimpered, clenching his eyes shut so that he wouldn't have to look at the demon. But that did little to help the situation. If anything, it made things worse.

Ghirahim could feel his presence over the child start to disappear. Growling in annoyance, the demon moved his head down so that he was looking right at the area where his mark had laid. He stuck his tongue out, licking at the area. Before Link could stop him, Ghirahim bit into the skin there, sucking the patch of skin as hard as he could.

Link whined deep in his throat, struggling even harder against Ghirahim. Eventually, the demon released his chest and the hero gazed down at the bruise that was starting to form. That part of his chest was already starting to feel numb, although pain was still lingering underneath. Hissing slightly, Link looked up at Ghirahim in shock. His eyes grew wider as he watched the demon start to disappear.

"I guess this is good bye, Skychild. But just remember this: my presence will always be around you because we are bound by the thread of fate. You will never rid of me, no matter how hard you try," Ghirahim said, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

Link watched as Ghirahim disappeared from his sight. The demon's eyes were the last thing to disappear. Once Ghirahim's presence had completely disappeared for good, Link hesitantly looked around. He noticed Faron lying on the floor, battered pretty badly. However, she was still breathing and some of her wounds looked as though they were healing.

His gaze then moved over to Zelda, who had passed out again, more than likely due to the strength of the ritual. There was a slight smile on her face and Link smiled in turn. Sighing deeply, Link gazed down at the bruise that was forming on his chest. Unlike the last mark that Ghirahim had given him, this one didn't seem to have any dark magic laced around it. It seemed to be purely a physical bruise. But that didn't mean that it didn't hurt.

Link's eyes narrowed as they took in the shape of the mark. It looked oddly like a diamond, and he wouldn't put it past the demon to try and mark him with a recognizable design. His finger came up to the mark and he fingered the wound, hissing in mild pain. It started to throb, making his entire chest uncomfortable.

The hero's eyes moved back to the area where Ghirahim had disappeared from. For some reason, what the demon had said was still sticking with him. He had to admit, it did feel as though Ghirahim's presence was washing over him. Narrowing his eyes, Link sighed and gazed at Zelda and Faron.

First things first, he needed to get the two females to a place where they could rest.

* * *

_One Year Later_

Link was sitting on the floating island, swinging his feet over the edge. His eyes were following the patterns of the vast amount of Loftwings flying around Skyloft. He smiled when he saw his Crimson Loftwing fly alongside Zelda's. The two really got along well. His eyes then moved down towards Skyloft. Everyone was bustling around the town, minding their own business. A sigh left Link's mouth before he closed his eyes.

He heard someone walking up behind him and Link tensed his body. Turning around quickly, Link's hand tightened around the hilt of his blade that was resting at his side. Link sighed in relief as he saw that it was only Professor Horwell who was behind him. The professor brushed the dirt off of his robes before offering Link a smile.

Link smiled back at his professor and watched as Horwell sat next to him. The hero turned his attention back to the open sky and let out a soft sigh. Silence floated around them and both males found it soothing for them. A soft breeze blew by them and Link shifted in his spot for a few seconds before settling back down.

Professor Horwell turned towards Link and gave his student a small smile. "I've noticed that you have been much calmer these past few months Link. May I presume that you are doing much better now?"

Link nodded his head and smiled. Horwell chuckled and patted Link on the shoulder. "Well, that is good. I had feared that the ghosts of your past had consumed you completely," Horwell said sadly.

Link froze and slowly turned towards Professor Horwell. The professor just stared at him in turn, his expression giving nothing away. How had his teacher found out about Ghirahim? He didn't remember telling anybody about the situation after he came back to Skyloft. The only ones who knew about it were Faron and Zelda.

Professor Horwell saw the spark of fear that entered Link's eyes and he placed a hand on his student's shoulder. "Do not worry Link. I am the only one here on Skyloft who was aware of your predicament," Horwell comforted Link.

Link nodded his head slowly before looking down at his hands. How had his professor known about the demon? He had to admit, he was surprised to hear that Professor Horwell knew what was going on the entire time. But then again, a part of him wasn't surprised. His teacher knew a lot about him and could easily tell when something was bothering him.

Link made weird noise in his throat when he felt Professor Horwell's hand move to his chest. More specifically, the area where Ghirahim had bitten him. Link's eyes widened in recognition. Professor Horwell must have seen both marks and, in an effort to help him, researched what both marks meant. And judging by the concern that shined in his teacher's eyes, that was exactly what happened.

Link's hand trailed overtop of Professor Horwell's hand and he frowned. The bruise that Ghirahim had gave him had healed pretty quickly, only taking about a week or so after the incident. However, a diamond-shaped scar was left behind and no matter what Link did, it never disappeared. He had even gone back to the Surface to see if either Zelda or Faron would purify the mark and vanish it. However, both females had told him that they were unable to rid of the scar. So, he was left of a constant reminder of what he had went through.

Horwell's hand moved from under Link's hand. The professor brushed his hair out of his face before looking towards the sky. "That mark will always be with you, no matter what you do. But perhaps that is not a bad thing in itself."

Link tilted his head towards Professor Horwell in confusion. The professor just gave his student a smile before pointing towards the sky. "You see Link, those that leave this world never really leave. Their presence is always with us and sometimes, this can be good. Other times, the encounter will turn dangerous. But all that you can do is lift your head up, look towards the sky, and just let go. That's the best way in ridding of your ghosts. Because you see, ghosts come back when someone feels guilt or regret. So, in order for the ghost to forgive you, you must first forgive yourself."

Link looked at Horwell in surprise, thinking about what his professor had just said. Groaning in exhaustion, Professor Horwell stood up and stretched. "Well, I should be going now. But just think about what I said Link."

Link nodded his head and turned so that he was facing the direction that he had originally positioned himself. Professor Horwell's words floated over him and he thought about what his teacher said.

Perhaps that's why Ghirahim came back. Not solely to get revenge on Link, but because the hero had felt remorse for killing him. And maybe that's why Ghirahim could never touch him when he was blind with anger, because Link had regretted striking Ghirahim when he was angry.

Maybe that's why Ghirahim didn't have a hold on him anymore. He had forgiven himself for what he's done, and Ghirahim couldn't comprehend that. Link tilted his head up to the sky and sighed. It was about time that he started ridding himself of his ghosts once and for all.

* * *

**A/N: UGH…this story was a full 31 pages. I want to bang my head against the keyboard at the thought of it. But I hope you guys enjoyed the story and hopefully you all understood it pretty well. **

**This is a oneshot, so I'm not planning on continuing it or making a sequel. **


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